The walk
Dedicated
A rule can sound Christian without being God's rule.
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
Mark 7:1-13 · Isaiah 29:13 · Colossians 2:20-23
They say
"Christians shouldn't do that. If you're serious about following God, you won't."
The scene
A personal conviction can become a rule for everybody else, and before long it can start being spoken about as though God made the rule.
Jesus confronted this when some Pharisees noticed that his disciples were eating without first washing their hands according to the tradition of the elders. This wasn't about ordinary hygiene. Mark explains that they had traditions about ceremonial washing which they carefully observed.
They asked Jesus why his disciples didn't follow them.
Jesus answered from Isaiah:
"But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."Mark 7:7
Then he gave them an example.
God had commanded:
"Honor your father and your mother."Mark 7:10
But someone could say that what their parents might have received from them was "Corban," meaning given to God.
It sounded religious. Jesus said their tradition then prevented that person from using it to help his father or mother.
He called it:
"making void the word of God by your tradition, which you have handed down."Mark 7:13
The problem wasn't simply that they had a tradition. Their tradition had been given an authority that got in the way of God's command.
Paul later warns Christians about rules that sound religious too:
"Don't handle, nor taste, nor touch."Colossians 2:21
He says these things "appear like wisdom in self-imposed worship... and severity to the body."Colossians 2:23
A human rule can look holy. That doesn't make it God's rule.
There may be good reasons for personal boundaries, and churches sometimes need rules of their own.
But when a human rule is presented as something God requires of every Christian, ask where God requires it, then open the Bible.
Maybe he does. If he does, obey him. If he doesn't, don't put God's name on somebody else's rule.
The point
Where does God require that?
Sit with this
Have you ever called your rule God's rule?